Traffic light work at Lamsey Lane/A149 junction in Heacham are ‘pain in the backside’ but will benefit area, councillors say

Although works to improve a busy junction are proving to be “a pain in the backside”, councillors insist it will be worth the inconvenience afterward.

Norfolk County Council has started its 15-week scheme to install traffic lights at the Lamsey Lane and A149 junction at Heacham, which has become a crash black spot in recent years.

However, drivers have complained about the buildup of traffic around the area in recent weeks.

One person said to “avoid the A149 Lamsey Lane junction for the next 15 weeks”, while another said: “It is horrible.”

As well as the Lamsey Lane work, there were also three-way traffic lights outside Tesco Express on Lynn Road in the village, causing more frustration to drivers with the added congestion.

However, a Norfolk County Council spokesperson has confirmed those lights have since been removed.

Cllr Dean Rawnsley, chair of Heacham Parish Council, said the Lamsey Lane work that is going on at the moment will benefit the area in the end.

He said: “As a Heacham resident, Lamsey Lane is something we have been trying to get started for a lot of years. The benefits to the village will be great.

“Yes, it is an inconvenience, but it is only until December, and then the benefits after that will be numerous for the villagers.”

Although a fixed date has not yet been set, December will be the month for the completion of the work.

Cllr Paul Rawlinson, who was a former chairman of Heacham Parish Council and worked as a project manager for the county council’s highways department, said he understands why people are becoming frustrated with traffic in the area - but says people will just have to cope with it.

“The biggest problem we have when anybody is doing work is, you can not make an omelette without cracking eggs,” he said.

“And unfortunately, it is always the case. People say, ‘The traffic needs to be done better’. Well, it is going to be like this until it is finished, and that is likely to be the end of December.

“From my experience, it could even be longer as delays do happen in projects and quite commonly for various reasons.

“I do think the frustration is just a natural frustration. The reality is, once this is done, everyone will go ‘oh this is great’, but it is going to be a pain in the backside up until that point.

“As much as people are frustrated, they are just going to have to suck it up and accept it because it cannot be left half finished. They have to be able to close these roads off to be able to work safely.

“We are not in summer now, so the amount of traffic visiting this area is less than it used to be. It just makes it look a little like summer traffic.”

A spokesperson for the county council added: “Junction improvements at Lamsey Lane are progressing well and due for completion at the end of the year.

“Norfolk County Council thanks residents for their patience whilst these much-needed safety improvements are carried out.”

The improvements are being carried out mainly in a bid to improve reliability for bus services using Lamsey Lane, with the signals placed where it meets the A149.

The installation of traffic lights will allow all vehicles to pull out of Lamsey Lane safely and enable buses to navigate the junction more effectively, with journey times expected to improve.